High Score
by Fem-inja
Summary: Dib has been sneaking out, visiting a certain green alien in the dark hours between night and morning. No one knows, or so he thinks. ZADR, Gaz and Dib family/friendship. "You're not as alone as you think."


Hello There. I'm Fem-inja, or Femmy whatever you wish to call me, and this is my very first fanfiction.

Disclaimer: I do not own Invader Zim, because if I did there would be **a lot** more ZADR hints. This work is fan-made and, other than giving me something to squee about, brings no profit to me whatsoever. Invader Zim is the property and creation of Jhonen Vasquez, truly one of the most brilliant cartoonists ever to grace pathetic worm babies with his awesome cartooning powers. : )

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The rapid taps of buttons filled the room, clock flashing 1:03 am in neon green. Nights like this, or mornings in this case, were common for Gaz. Neglecting father, insane brother, the simple commands under her fingers gave Gaz a sense of control. Something that she lacked severely in her daily life, but this situation was slightly different. Tonight, she had a purpose other than playing video games, certainly a rare occurrence for the aggressive girl.

Pixilated letters sprawled across the tiny screen that illuminated her pale face.

**New High Score**

**3,203,050**

**GAZ**

Gaz frowned, still not the highest score. With a small hand she pushed a section of her deep purple hair out of her eyes. Biting her lip in concentration, she shifted on the bed to rest her back against the head board, pulling on her over-sized nightshirt to ensure that it didn't go up past mid-thigh. This was her brother's room after all. Gross.

Determined, Gaz pressed 'New Game'. The illuminated graphics cast shadows on the walls of her older brother's residence. Or, at least what used to be. You see, Dib was spending less and less time in his own room, and more and more time… somewhere else. Gaz had a pretty solid theory as to where Dib was wandering during the late nights and early mornings. But, the smirk grew to what could almost be a smile, it would be way more fun to put him on the spot like this. What a fun little game it was, to screw up her brother's life.

As if on cue, rustling sounds came from beyond the window. Gaz looked out at the framed segment of black sky, pausing _Vampire Piggy Slayers_ and closing the top of the screen so that the soft glow would not give away her presence.

Dib pried the window open from the other side, emerging into Gaz's view. As he turned around to close it behind him, she very suddenly clicked the bedside lamp on. Just like that familiar scene from one of those cheesy movies, caught red handed.

The look on his face, hilarious. Him barely muffling a scream, recoiling backwards, running into his bookshelf which knocked a pile of paranormally related books onto him, and making more noise than a scream could have possibly produced. Priceless.

She gave him a few moments to recover from his humiliating predicament. What a nice sister she was. Dib stood and dusted himself off, kicking a book or two away from his feet.

"Gaz, what on Earth are you doing in my room at one in the morning?"

She shrugged, indicating to her beloved Game Slave. "You're never in your room anyway, thought I'd raid your snack stash while I played." She reached over and grabbed a pork rind from a bag on the nightstand, popping it into her moth and chewing loudly.

Dib looked just a tad nervous. "W-what are you talking about?" He shifted to another gap in the pile of scattered novels, picking a few up and moving them aside. "This is the first night I've been out."

Staring intensely at her now revived game, Gaz raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?" The cold, sarcastic tone in her voice indicated that she didn't believe him for a second. "Cause, if you'll look carefully," She jerked her head in the direction of a pile of discarded junk food wrappings. "I've been here more than one night." Awkward silence would have filled the room if not for Gaz's continual button pressing.

"So where were you?" She asked, typing the familiar G-A-Z into the second high score slot. A particularly sour expression crossed her face. She still hadn't beat the coveted 'Ultimate High Score.' That same number had remained at the top of the list for more than two weeks now.

"I was walking" Came the too sudden answer. "N-Needed fresh air." Came the too convenient explanation. Dib fidgeted nervously, moving from one foot to the other.

Gaz didn't look convinced. "You've been with him."

**GAME OVER**

A grim expression showed her displeasure. This time she was third from the top.

Taken aback, Dib recoiled. His reply came out tense and panicked, words slurring together because his speech was so rapid. "H-Him? W-who's Him? I don't know this 'Him.' You're crazy!"

Gaz raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm crazy?"

Dib shifted his gaze, deciding his boots had become very interesting. The jig was up, there was no use hiding it anymore.

"What are you afraid of?" _Vampire Piggy Slayers_ reflected in her eyes, lights shifting and flashing. "What's so weird about being gay?"

Shocked and slightly disturbed by her simple acceptance, Dib gaped openly. "Gaz! You can't seriously say that!"

She spared him a glance from her Game Slave. "Why not?"

"Because! It's not just being gay!" Dib groaned. "He's my enemy! And he's not even- he's not even…" Dib gripped either side of his head, sinking to the floor. "Not even _human_." Shame and self loathing tainted his voice, along with confusion and despair. Closing his eyes, Dib stayed where he fell, face buried in his hands.

Gaz sat up, placing the paused Game Slave next to her, and regarded that idiot of a brother with an exasperated expression. "You're so stupid." With a shift of her weight, she swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Everyone already thinks your completely nutso. Who's going to care if you like men, let alone-" Raising her hands she made a quoting motion. "_An alien_." To others, she might have sounded hostile, but as her brother, Dib could tell she was being nice. Well, as nice as Gaz could be.

Dib pointed at her accusingly. "But he _is _an alien! You know that!" It was true, she did.

"They don't." Gaz gestured out the window, referring to the kids at school, the teachers, everyone. "They'll never know."

Dib shook his head, then following her pointed finger, allowed his vision to rest on the now open window. "You don't get it Gaz, you just don't understand." A cold breeze moved the navy blue curtains. The air was cold against his pale skin. "They can live in ignorance for the rest of their lives. They can go on pretending I never even mentioned the word 'alien'." His tone was bitter, fueled by years of scorn and disbelief from the very people he was trying to save. "They'll never know." Dib jabbed a thumb towards himself, his expression pained. "But _I_ will. I'll _always _know."

Without a second of delay Gaz scooped up a pork rind and sent it flying. It hit Dib squarely in the middle of his forehead, causing him to blink in surprise. Easy hit, big targets were hard to miss after all.

"Don't assume I don't understand, Dib." Taking her miniature console into her hand, she stood. Face was marked with a conflicting emotion, Gaz narrowed her eyes. Her normally small stature seemed to loom over Dib and fill the room. With a sharp motion she raised her hand. He braced for impact.

Gaz thrust the Game Slave towards Dib, holding it out for him to take. The top was closed, purple cover glistening like vinyl. He hesitated, refusing to extend his hand until she nodded in confirmation. Reaching out, Dib took it gingerly from her, handling it with painstaking care. Gaz _never_ let him even touch her Game Slave, let alone hold it.

"Just because you're the _weirdest_ kid, doesn't mean the rest of us don't have our quirks." A crooked, almost amused smirk played on her lips. "You're not as alone as you think." And with that, she turned and left his room, firmly closing the door behind her.

Confused, disturbed, and still half-afraid Gaz would come back and beat the crap out of him for actually taking her most prized possession, Dib remained frozen for a few moments, staring at the purple rectangle in disbelief.

Finally his curiosity began to eat at him. Why did Gaz give him her Game Slave? What was he supposed to do with it? After contemplating his options, Dib concluded the best course of action would be to start with opening it. As carefully as possible, doing his best not to leave smudges on its flawless surface, he gently lifted up the top half of the electronic device, exposing the main display screen. It was the high score list. And on it, at the very top, was the last name Dib would have ever suspected.

**Ultimate High Score**

**4, 563, 425**

**TAK**


End file.
